Howdy all,
The last day of November and the sun is trying to shine. otherwise it has been a dull morning. The wild life is abundant on the fields surrounding the farm. Many female moose and calves along with deer grazing through the snow on the left over alphalfa. The cows are all in the barn area where David has established 4 large feeding stations close to the water wells that the cows drink from. We still have lots of snow but relatively warm weather. It has been above zero Celsius during the day and the coldest we've had is -10 C at night.
I am feeling much better these days. The terrible cough I had has seemed to disappear and the mucus problems have mitigated and it is now manageable. I am still gaining weight and strength. I'll be seeing Dr. Filatov in Prince George on Dec. 10th. The outside of my throat and neck has swollen up such that everyone notices it. It was painful but it is now just annoying. When I saw Dr. Campbell here in Vanderhoof on Wednesday this week, she said it was nothing to worry about but, she didn't have any idea why I was so swollen. A mystery.
I had a full shot a couple of weeks ago and on Wednesday I had a Pneomovak and a tetanus shot. The Pneomovak will protect me from Viral Pneumonia for life. I've had no adverse reactions to either shot.
The day before yesterday Milton I set up my roll top desk in the Reiki room. Dolores took 4 or 5 days and finished wall papering two of the walls and she stained the other two log walls and the ceiling. We have also put my computer desk in this room and there is still enough room for her to do Reiki on her clients when needed. I am pleased to have a private place where I can get away and do my paper work and other things.
Well people, this has been a good week for me. I'm feeling good and my positive attitude is coming back to me. I'm pleased to be gaining weight gradually. I am eating much more and the food tastes really good. I'm still taking 6 cans of tube food a day so I have a good callorie count.
I'll post more in a few days before I see Dr. Filatov. Bye for now.
Rick
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
The snowy days of winter
Yo & hello,
A cold crisp day (-11 C this AM), sunny and the 10 plus inches of snow is sparkling in the sunshine. I am a virtual shut in. The cold air drys my lungs out and then I cough for hours. When I had this trachea tube put in the folks from Respiratory Services called in to see me and give me a care package of supplies to take home with me. One of the items was a small supply of Portex Thermovents (6). It is a small device that slides on to the end of my trachea tube like a miniature gas mask. I filters the air as I breathe it in and adds moisture to it so my lungs do not dry out.
Last week when Dolores and I were in PG we stopped into Medi Chair, one of the Medical Supply Houses there, and inquired about the Thermovent. I received a call today. These little devices are $450 for a box of 50 and each Thermovent can only be used once. Yikes! Guess I'll have to think of something else. I'm open to any ideas you may have.
I'm 64 today, just one more year and I will get Old Age Pension cheques. Again, yikes or maybe a small yippee. I'm feeling better and while I have this on going cough and mucus, it is a small price to pay for having the third airway. Everyday I seem to be able to eat more real food and in larger quantities. I am even getting hunger pangs once in a while. What a pleasant feeling that is after all these months of having no appetite at all. My taste buds are finally coming alive albeit slowly and that is something to be happy about. Now I wish my thin saliva glands would come back.
SO long for now everyone. I'll be posting again really soon.
Love and hugs,
Rick
A cold crisp day (-11 C this AM), sunny and the 10 plus inches of snow is sparkling in the sunshine. I am a virtual shut in. The cold air drys my lungs out and then I cough for hours. When I had this trachea tube put in the folks from Respiratory Services called in to see me and give me a care package of supplies to take home with me. One of the items was a small supply of Portex Thermovents (6). It is a small device that slides on to the end of my trachea tube like a miniature gas mask. I filters the air as I breathe it in and adds moisture to it so my lungs do not dry out.
Last week when Dolores and I were in PG we stopped into Medi Chair, one of the Medical Supply Houses there, and inquired about the Thermovent. I received a call today. These little devices are $450 for a box of 50 and each Thermovent can only be used once. Yikes! Guess I'll have to think of something else. I'm open to any ideas you may have.
I'm 64 today, just one more year and I will get Old Age Pension cheques. Again, yikes or maybe a small yippee. I'm feeling better and while I have this on going cough and mucus, it is a small price to pay for having the third airway. Everyday I seem to be able to eat more real food and in larger quantities. I am even getting hunger pangs once in a while. What a pleasant feeling that is after all these months of having no appetite at all. My taste buds are finally coming alive albeit slowly and that is something to be happy about. Now I wish my thin saliva glands would come back.
SO long for now everyone. I'll be posting again really soon.
Love and hugs,
Rick
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Status Quo
Yoski,
Well, we've had a taste of winter, sub zero temperatures and lots of snow and cold west winds. Yesterday and today are fall like, sunny, windy and relatively warm +4 to 8 C. David is glad the snow is gone. The cows are feeding on the very back pasture where there is lots of food for them. Ideally he would like to keep them on the pastures until the end of November thus maximizing the winter hay stocks/supply.
I have lost some more weight. Today I am sub 170 lbs for the first time since before I had the trachea tube installed. Sounds like I had a plumbing feature installed. I've had some stomach/intestinal problems during the past week and was off my food and could not tolerate 6 cans of tube feed per day. It doesn't take much. Even if I miss just 2 cans of tube food in a day, I'm losing 710 calories. I've been studying a booklet on Good Nutrition, a guide for people with cancer. It's given me a lot of ideas to help me boost my intake of calories and protein and how to combat dry mouth and thick saliva as well as sore mouth and throat. It's all basic info but, it never hurts to dust off the tools.
Saturday is voting day. All Municipal elections are held on the dame day, the 3rd Sat. in Nov. every three years, except Vancouver which has a special charter. Guess what? Nobody here knows where we vote and I have not been able to find out/ I went to the Government office yesterday and even they didn't know. I did find out where the polls are in Vanderhoof and I'll drop in there on Saturday. It's difficult for me to get out and about these days because I can't drive. I have to rely on others to drive here and there.
Well that's it for now. Write me at: rdhoney@tlpg.com if you have any questions that I haven't answered for you. Don't be shy, I would love to hear from you.
Love to all,
Rick (a pied dans Vanderhoof)
Well, we've had a taste of winter, sub zero temperatures and lots of snow and cold west winds. Yesterday and today are fall like, sunny, windy and relatively warm +4 to 8 C. David is glad the snow is gone. The cows are feeding on the very back pasture where there is lots of food for them. Ideally he would like to keep them on the pastures until the end of November thus maximizing the winter hay stocks/supply.
I have lost some more weight. Today I am sub 170 lbs for the first time since before I had the trachea tube installed. Sounds like I had a plumbing feature installed. I've had some stomach/intestinal problems during the past week and was off my food and could not tolerate 6 cans of tube feed per day. It doesn't take much. Even if I miss just 2 cans of tube food in a day, I'm losing 710 calories. I've been studying a booklet on Good Nutrition, a guide for people with cancer. It's given me a lot of ideas to help me boost my intake of calories and protein and how to combat dry mouth and thick saliva as well as sore mouth and throat. It's all basic info but, it never hurts to dust off the tools.
Saturday is voting day. All Municipal elections are held on the dame day, the 3rd Sat. in Nov. every three years, except Vancouver which has a special charter. Guess what? Nobody here knows where we vote and I have not been able to find out/ I went to the Government office yesterday and even they didn't know. I did find out where the polls are in Vanderhoof and I'll drop in there on Saturday. It's difficult for me to get out and about these days because I can't drive. I have to rely on others to drive here and there.
Well that's it for now. Write me at: rdhoney@tlpg.com if you have any questions that I haven't answered for you. Don't be shy, I would love to hear from you.
Love to all,
Rick (a pied dans Vanderhoof)
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Days after the move
Yo & hello all,
Yup, I'm here. Still struggling with my new Trachea Tube with a bad and persistent cough and lots of mucus. It's a struggle to get used to it but, I am well not with standing. I'm holding my weigh at 172 to 175 lbs. I'm really quite skinny and working hard to harden up my muscles. A little bit at a time. Every day I am trying to do more and more.
The move went well. Dolores and I had packed up the kitchen, bedrooms and my den and moved lots of boxes and things here to Vanderhoof in the car. On moving day we had to finish packing the books in my library and the furnace/workshop. It was a big job. Dolores, David (her son) and her brothers Milton and Floyd and I took on the job. We rented a 14', 1 ton cube van from U Haul. We started at noonish on Oct. 29th and were finished at 5:00 pm. Dolores spent most of those hours cleaning. I vacuumed the basement and the stairs where the carpets were. We left the house clean as a whistle. We unloaded the truck the following morning and returned the truck at 3:00 pm on the 30th.
On Nov. 1st I deposited the first rent cheque from Ms. M.J. Jacobson my new tenant. I also set up a term deposit for her security deposit. She is a really fine young lady, a single mom with a 2 year old son and a small lap dog. I've known her mother for 20 years so, I have a good feeling about her.
We have been working long days since then unpacking and integrating everything into this house has been a big chore. Dolores has taken the opportunity to clean each room on the main floor as we move new stuff in. I have been packing boxes up to the 2nd floor and our bedroom. Lots of the boxes are being stored until the sprig when we'll have a large garage sale.
I am happy to be here and I have adjusted to the farm and the slower pace of living. I miss the City and the things you can do but, farm life is interesting and Dolores is looking forward to me getting better and stronger so we can work together next year in the garden, with the chickens and other areas. We have come to agreement on cost sharing and what costs I will contribute to. I am happy with the financial arrangements as is she.
Winter is coming and the out door work takes on a different focus. Chopping wood and kindling, loading the outside wood box and the inside wood box is a daily chore. 90 % of the household heat comes from the fireplace which is on 24 hours a day throughout the winter. Wood as you can appreciate becomes a big issue. We buy it locally but, it must be chopped and stacked. As I get stronger, that will become my principal winter chore along with tending to the chickens.
Milton usually works as a camp cook and he is away for most of the winter so I'll pick up his portion of the chores as time goes on. My health and strength will be a limiting factor. David will do what I cannot. There is a real sense of sharing the work load among those available to do it.
Well all, that's it for now.
Love to everyone,
Rick
Yup, I'm here. Still struggling with my new Trachea Tube with a bad and persistent cough and lots of mucus. It's a struggle to get used to it but, I am well not with standing. I'm holding my weigh at 172 to 175 lbs. I'm really quite skinny and working hard to harden up my muscles. A little bit at a time. Every day I am trying to do more and more.
The move went well. Dolores and I had packed up the kitchen, bedrooms and my den and moved lots of boxes and things here to Vanderhoof in the car. On moving day we had to finish packing the books in my library and the furnace/workshop. It was a big job. Dolores, David (her son) and her brothers Milton and Floyd and I took on the job. We rented a 14', 1 ton cube van from U Haul. We started at noonish on Oct. 29th and were finished at 5:00 pm. Dolores spent most of those hours cleaning. I vacuumed the basement and the stairs where the carpets were. We left the house clean as a whistle. We unloaded the truck the following morning and returned the truck at 3:00 pm on the 30th.
On Nov. 1st I deposited the first rent cheque from Ms. M.J. Jacobson my new tenant. I also set up a term deposit for her security deposit. She is a really fine young lady, a single mom with a 2 year old son and a small lap dog. I've known her mother for 20 years so, I have a good feeling about her.
We have been working long days since then unpacking and integrating everything into this house has been a big chore. Dolores has taken the opportunity to clean each room on the main floor as we move new stuff in. I have been packing boxes up to the 2nd floor and our bedroom. Lots of the boxes are being stored until the sprig when we'll have a large garage sale.
I am happy to be here and I have adjusted to the farm and the slower pace of living. I miss the City and the things you can do but, farm life is interesting and Dolores is looking forward to me getting better and stronger so we can work together next year in the garden, with the chickens and other areas. We have come to agreement on cost sharing and what costs I will contribute to. I am happy with the financial arrangements as is she.
Winter is coming and the out door work takes on a different focus. Chopping wood and kindling, loading the outside wood box and the inside wood box is a daily chore. 90 % of the household heat comes from the fireplace which is on 24 hours a day throughout the winter. Wood as you can appreciate becomes a big issue. We buy it locally but, it must be chopped and stacked. As I get stronger, that will become my principal winter chore along with tending to the chickens.
Milton usually works as a camp cook and he is away for most of the winter so I'll pick up his portion of the chores as time goes on. My health and strength will be a limiting factor. David will do what I cannot. There is a real sense of sharing the work load among those available to do it.
Well all, that's it for now.
Love to everyone,
Rick
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